The Wolf Heir

Chapter Eight: The Clan of Wolves

Elizabeth was bouncing around from one place to another, I think I had never seen her so happy before. It was like… she was born to be a werewolf. It was a strange thought to have but something inside of me told me it was true. In a way, it was like both of us had been destined, from the very start, since we first met, till this day.

A shudder ran down my spine, not in an uncomfortable way but it wasn’t pleasing either. The questions in my mind rang louder with each day that passed and I had even begun to lose sleep because of it. Not to mention that Elizabeth was making me anxious by barking and jumping around the clearing. If we were seen, the people in our town would be consumed by fear and would most likely try to hunt us down, we had to be careful.

“Elizabeth,” I said sternly as I looked at my friend with a serious expression. To my surprise, she stopped jumping and looked at me sheepishly.

“I’m sorry, this is just amazing. I love everything about this. Didn’t it feel odd for you to find out about this side of you?” she asked quickly, her eyes filled with wonder.

I shrugged, “I did, a bit. Somehow the dreams I had been having the last couple of weeks made it easier somehow.”

Elizabeth turned to me with a confused look on her face, “Dreams? What dreams? How come you never told me?”

I rolled my eyes and shook my big furry head, “because I didn’t think it mattered. I had been having the same dream over and over again and I just found it annoying. Besides, after I shifted, I never got those dreams again and I am glad. To be honest I was afraid that if I shifted again after the first time, the dreams would return, which is why this is only the second time I have shifted.” After I finished explaining, there was a silence between us. I hadn’t expected Elizabeth to answer but I wished I hadn’t said too much.

“You should have shifted more often. Don’t you love it?” she asked happily as she sat down next to me.

Something inside of me didn’t like the way she was starting to act and the way she moved around me. The feeling was territorial and… authoritative. Something inside of me let out a deep growl as I glared at my friend. Instantly, she lowered her head in a submissive manner and let out a low whine. Once my wolf was satisfied by her response, I regained control and let out a deep sigh.

“We have to be careful, Elizabeth, we cannot be careless and let ourselves get carried away by our wolves. We could be seen, and it would mean our deaths. I would recommend shifting back to our normal selves to get out of here, but I can see your dress is beyond repair. We should get you home to get a new dress. Besides, I think the walk would be good for us to think about what this could mean for us,” I said sternly, and my friend only nodded. She looked at me, as if expectantly and didn’t move until I did.

Slowly and cautiously, I led us towards my friend’s house. My wolf was very alert to any sound of movement nearby and by the time we reached Elizabeth’s home, the sky was starting to darken. Along the way, we had barely shared words. I wasn’t really feeling up for talking and Elizabeth seemed to be too excited and overwhelmed by this new self and the beauty of nature. I let her be, it was better if she remained calm and distracted on other things.

Meanwhile, I wondered why my friend had shifted like I did. Was being a werewolf contagious? Was it like a virus? Maybe I was putting my family at risk without even knowing it. It didn’t make sense that my best friend would turn just like me, there had to be some kind of explanation.

Truthfully, I wasn’t too keen on the idea of heading out into the unknown to find a witch that may or may not know the answers to our questions. Not to mention that there was no way I would be able to explain it to my parents nor would I expose my friend to such risk. It wasn’t worth it and I preferred to remain where I was, even if that meant I would be left with doubts. There was no point in risking our lives, we were safe here, we didn’t need a witch’s help.

When Elizabeth’s house came to view, I stopped at the edge of the forest and looked at my friend. She looked nervous and stiff, a worried look on her face was enough to make me feel bad for her. She was scared and I could relate to that.

“Do not let your mother see you like this nor should you let her see you shift. Remember, our lives are on the line. We don’t know anything about what this means, nor do we know why this happened. Just be careful, please,” I said, my voice was filled with power but still held a gentle tone for my friend, I thought it would be best for me to give her space to process all that had happened.

“Don’t you want answers?” Elizabeth called as I was starting to walk away, her voice was filled with desperation and doubt.

I turned to look at my friend and remained quiet for a second. “I do want them. I just don’t know where to start and honestly, I don’t think it’s worth it. We shouldn’t put our lives on the line, not more than we already are.”

Elizabeth pursed her lips and let out a huff, “My wolf told me something about a woman, Morgan. Do you know of her?”

I shook my head, “No, but my wolf told me about her as well. And she’s a witch, not a woman.” I turned my head back to the forest when I heard my friend’s voice behind me.

“Well, I want answers, so, if you come across anything that could lead us to her, please come to me. I will follow you anywhere you need to go to find them, I don’t care of the dangers, Katherine. I am not afraid and you cannot protect me from everything,” she called after me, confidently, and I only nodded before disappearing into the darkness.

Elizabeth, you will come to see what I have, some things are better of being left unknown. I thought to myself, making sure she wasn’t able to pick up on that thought as I headed back in the direction we had come.

After arriving to the river, I took my clothes and shifted back to my normal body. I sighed in relief as I felt the soft grass under my toes and the feeling of being human again. Once I was dressed, I walked over to my house and by the time I reached it, it was dark.

My parents were both inside talking in a calm manner and when they heard the door open, both of them turned to me.

“Hello pumpkin’, I was starting to worry about you. I thought I would have to go out to find you with ol’ Storm like the old days when you escaped to go to the river,” my father teased as I walked over to him and hugged him tightly.

“I’m not like that anymore, father. I’m here. I just accompanied Elizabeth home,” I said with a shrug as I ignored my mother’s disapproving looks and went into the kitchen to serve myself a plate of dinner.

Back at table, I sat down next to my father who asked about my day while I kept on ignoring my mother who was glaring at me from across the table. When I finished talking, a silence remained between us until I turned to my mother and pretended not to know why she was upset. “Is something the matter, mother?” I asked slowly and calmly.

My mother pursed her lips into a tight line and squinted her eyes at me, “You know what is wrong, Katherine Greenwood. You are well aware that I do not like you going out at night alone, not by yourself. We do not want anything to happen to you, Katherine, nor do we wish bad things to you. But for Heaven’s sake, try to be more careful and understand our worries.” My mother looked as if she had just gotten rid of much weight from her shoulders.

My father, on the other hand, stiffened and kept his eyes on his hands which were on the table. “Pumpkin’, we just worry about you, that’s all. We don’t want anything to happen to you. Just be careful and try not to be out alone when it starts getting dark,” he said softly, and I nodded.

I could understand their fear, I was their only child, after all. It was only natural they would worry about their small, fragile-looking daughter because you never knew what kind of men you could find out in the trails during those times. Little did they know that I could protect myself now, I was no weak human, I was a werewolf. But I couldn’t tell them that, so I decided to agree with them.

“I’m sorry I worried you. Just like you wanted to know I was safe, I wanted to make sure Elizabeth got home safely. I won’t do anything like that again,” I said softly as I placed my hands on top of each of my parents’. “I’ll help you clean up, mother,” I said after a moment as I got to my feet quickly and grabbed their plates along with mine to take them to the awaiting bucket in the kitchen.

My parents didn’t argue with me as they helped me clean up and soon, we were hugging each other goodnight as each of us headed to our rooms.

I was in my nightgown, under the covers thinking over the day’s events. I couldn’t explain anything, nor could I imagine what was happening. A yawn escaped me, and I quickly shook my thoughts away as I let myself drift off to sleep.

…

I was standing in front of a big burning fire in the middle of a forest. Around the fire were ten hooded people chanting in low voices as they sat on logs, forming a circle. I was behind them, looking for some kind of clue of where I was but nothing gave it away.

My heart was raising in my chest as I hunched down onto the bushes, watching the people perform what looked like a ritual. “Brothers, we are gathered here today because the threat we had feared has returned. Werewolves want to make a comeback once again. It was our ancestor’s duty to eradicate those unnatural beings. Our destiny won’t be fulfilled until every last one of them is dead.

Join me brothers, in this hunt, to eradicate the last living werewolves. To end their rein and bring peace and balance back to nature. For decades we have remained in the shadows but no more, now it is time for the hunters to rise again. It is time for the Clan of Wolves to thrive. The Clan of Wolves will rise again!” Cheers of agreement and excitement rang around the circle as they raised their hands in the air towards the speaker who was right in front of me.

My eyes widened as I realized that under their black cloaks were shinning, metal objects. As I squinted my eyes to get a closer look, I realized they weren’t just any objects, they were swords and knives, like the ones I had seen in my dreams from before my birthday. The same weapons that were used against that old village.

A cold shudder ran down my spine and unconsciously, I started shaking my head and stepping back, deeper into the woods. Something about those weapons seemed familiar, something about them was screaming at me to run. They were infused with so much anger and hatred that made my skin crawl.

My head began to pound painfully and the echo of beating drums rang around me, but I couldn’t take my eyes off those shinning blades. Not even, when the loud scream of a young woman filled my ears and made me cringe as I felt something inside of me break.

…

I woke up gasping and sweaty. I hasn’t had a dream like that since the day I had shifted. But something about this dream seemed different. This one seemed more recent, more directed at me. It felt as if I had just witnessed something that was happening while I slept. That couldn’t be possible. But then again, being a werewolf shouldn’t be possible either.

Wobbly, I got out of bed and hurried to the kitchen to grab a glass of water. The sweat on my skin was making my skin crawl and my racing heart didn’t seem to slow down. Something about that dream had been too serious, like if it had been a warning. But a warning of what? Who were the Clan of Wolves? And what did they mean that werewolves had almost been wiped out? Were Elizabeth and I the last ones living left?

I gulped uncomfortably and shook my head, trying to clear the thoughts away. No matter how much I thought of my doubts, I wasn’t going to find answers here. I needed to find Morgan. It felt urgent to find her now, more than before. There was no doubt inside of me about that, danger was coming our way and I wasn’t sure I wanted to face it.

As I walked back to my room, a slight tremble still remained. I sat down on my bed and tried taking deep breaths to clear my mind. And no matter how hard I tried, one thought remained, and the words echoed in my ears, The Clan of Wolves will rise again.